I spent 1 hour and 10 minutes at Altitude Eye Care in Castle Rock for only about 15 minutes of actual care, with most of the visit spent waiting in an uncomfortable, noisy area beside LensCrafters’ glasses-production lab. Any actual care was rushed and the exam-tech was particularly disinterested in patients. The total cost of my non-insurance visit was $175 for this experience. There was zero communication about the 1 hour delay, and the office was understaffed and overbooked (3 total employees: telesales-"receptionist", optometrist, exam-tech). The front desk receptionist was disengaged and uninterested with a focus on telesales rather than welcoming or patient-focused, and I did was not respected or valued as a customer. I felt very uncomfortable with the environment in the “waiting room” which had a barren feeling not dis-similar to a DMV office. Although Altitude Eye Care and LensCrafters may be separate businesses, patients experience them as one shared location with aggressive and somewhat obnoxious sales practices in the large LensCrafters showroom which is required to enter the optometrist area. Management should review appointment scheduling, staffing, wait-time communication, front-desk service, and the suitability of the waiting area. From my actual on-site observation during the hour - approximately 3-4 patients are scheduled per hour -- leading to the long wait times of a highly compressed and pressured schedule for the harried 3 actual employees. A 70-minute appointment with only about 15 minutes of rushed and uninterested care is not reasonable. Based on my terrible experience, I would not recommend this Castle Rock location to anyone.
